PLBuyer contacted speakers scheduled to appear at this year’s PLMA Trade Show Nov. 13-15 to bring you previews of what they’ll be discussing. Here’s what they told us.

 

SUNDAY
How Consumers Make Decisions
Do shoppers rely on lists or do they buy on impulse? “Buxton was hired by FMI and partnered with Meijer and Winn-Dixie to set up a segmentation of who is most likely to buy PL and who is not. Our survey then tracked the marketing campaign and found new ways to identify who shops for private labels, who doesn’t and those most likely to change,” explains Courtney Hall, manager of public relations at the Forth Worth, Texas-based research firm. Buxton will present during this Sunday session (see schedule).

Viva Latino: Taking Advantage of America’s Big New Market
Stephen Palacios, executive vice president, Cheskin Added Value, will be chairing this session, taking an in-depth look at how the growing Hispanic market can be a profitable one for private labels. “Retailers must learn not to classify Hispanics into a single cultural group, my presentation will discuss the differences and how they affect the shopping experience in more detail,” Palacios tells PLBuyer. For a preview of his talk, read his guest column in this issue, page 50.

New Directions for Drug Chains
Drug chains have re-invented themselves to compete in today’s marketplace. Now they are revamping their private label programs as well.  Christian Strong, president, Can-Am Care, will be focusing during this session on private label’s influence in drug chains and talking about recent trends affecting the industry.

MONDAY
Salute to Excellence Breakfast
With internet, mobile phones and social media becoming extraordinarily powerful forces in the marketplace, it’s clear that consumers of tomorrow may shop very differently from consumers of today. Find out how shopping will change and what the coming retail marketplace look like as a result from Douglas Merrill, former chief information officer at Google.

TUESDAY
PLMA Live! Breakfast
What are Americans really eating these days?  More importantly, what trends are in the making, and where do private labels fit in?  “The economy has impacted how and what we eat. Some very clear eating patterns have emerged as well, showing how Americans are really eating, not just how they say they are eating. Food costs are on the rise and the economy’s structure has left us with only winners and losers and that has altered our eating behavior,” explains Harry Balzer, chief industry analyst and vice president of the Port Washington, N.Y.-based research firm the NPD Group. Balzer will present at this breakfast.